Table 1: Prerequisites and Possible Credits for Projects other than Enclosed Buildings
 |
The LEED-NC (new construction) 2.1 rating system was developed
for commercial buildings; however, many of the credits could apply
to projects other than enclosed buildings, such as highways and
roads, light and heavy rail, ports and marines, parks and parkways.1
In fact, the LEED standards could be applied to any constructed
project. Table 1 identifies three required prerequisites (of a possible
seven) and 34 possible credits (of a possible 69) that any of these
other types of projects could achieve.
Applying LEED Principles to a Transportation
Project
Consider a fictitious rail alignment project that has been designed
to be energy efficient and environmentally responsible to help illustrate
how some of the LEED principles can be applied to a transportation
project and the credits listed in Table 1 can be earned. This project
involves the development of an approximately 416-km (260-mile) -long
new high-speed rail line connecting St. Louis, Missouri to Kansas
City, Missouri.
Credits. The rail alignment that was selected
was used previously for secondary roads and avoided the need to
develop prime farmland or land that was lower than 1.5 m (5 feet)
above the elevation of the 100-year flood plain, provided habitats
for threatened or endangered species, was within 33 m (100 feet)
of a wetland; or was public parkland (SS 1).
Of the several alignment choices available through Columbia, Missouri,
(population of approximately 70,000) the designers selected one
that passed through a prior industrial park and a railroad bed,
thereby protecting nearby green fields that would have been impacted
by another alternative route (SS 2). As part of the construction,
the industrial park site was remediated to eliminate prior contamination
(SS 3). The selected route to the new rail station proved to have
additional benefits as it was located within 0.4 km (¼ mile)
of the local Missouri University bus service and the Greyhound bus
station (SS 4.1).
Stormwater run-off from the track alignment, grade crossings and
related improvements yielded no net increase in the rate and quantity
of stormwater run-off from existing to developed conditions (SS
6.1). In fact, the use of vegetated filter strips and bioswales
to treat the stormwater volumes left the site dramatically improved
over prior conditions (SS 6.2). Indigenous trees that require no
irrigation for survival (WE 1.1, 1.2) were used to shade at least
30 percent of non-roof impervious surfaces at grade crossings and
related improvements (SS 7.1).
Light fixtures selected for at-grade crossings avoided off-site
lighting and night-sky pollution (SS 8). These fixtures, which use
the sun for their energy source through photovoltaic conversion,
lowered the total energy load for the overall project by 20 percent
(EA 2.1, 2.2, 2.3). The balance of energy for the entire rail line
is purchased power generated from renewable resources that meet
the Center for Resource Solutions (CRS) Green-e products certification
requirements (EA 6)2.
Train stations were equipped with restroom facilities featuring
high-efficiency fixtures that use collected roof drainage (gray
water) for sewage conveyance, thereby reducing dependence on municipal
potable water for sewage conveyance by at least 50 percent (WE 2).
Separate collection facilities for recycled paper, glass, plastic
and metals were provided in each station, thereby reducing the waste
that would otherwise be hauled to and disposed of in landfills (MR
1).
A LEED-accredited professional, who was involved in the design
from project inception (ID 2), initiated a design charette with
all of the design team members and the owner. Many design ideas
that reduced resource depletion were developed through the charette
and implemented in the rail alignment design, including the following:
- Salvaged railroad ties were used for the rail track, thereby
reducing reliance on new materials for the entire project by more
than 10 percent (MR 3.1, 3.2).
- Recycled steel and slag cement with a minimum of 40 percent
post-industrial content comprised 50 percent of the building materials
used in the project (MR 4.1, 4.2).
- Fifty percent of the wood used for concrete forms and temporary
construction was certified in accordance with the Forest Stewardship
Council Guidelines (MR 7).3
- At least 50 percent of all materials used in the project were
extracted, harvested, or recovered within 800 km (500 miles) of
the project site, thereby reducing environmental impacts related
to materials manufacturing and transport (MR 5.1, 5.2).
- A construction-waste-management plan was implemented that recycled
and/ or salvaged at least 75 percent of the total weight of the
construction debris (MR 2.1, 2.2).
Prerequisites. As part of the design effort, the
design team employed a third party commissioning agent who did a
considerable amount of work that resulted in the design team, contractor,
and owner being assured that the systems were designed, installed
and calibrated to achieve the optimum energy performance that the
designers intended (Prereq EA 1). The commissioning agent also performed
a near-warranty-end review to determine if all systems were continuing
to operate as intended and prepared a manual that the owner will
use to recalibrate the energy saving systems after the warranty
phase (EA 3).
Through the construction process, the construction team adopted
an erosion and sedimentation control plan that reduced negative
impacts of soil loss by storm water run off and sedimentation of
storm water and/or receiving streams (Prereq SS 1).
Conclusion
Although this project is fictitious, it illustrates that the LEED
2.1 practices could readily be applied to a non-building project.
If we discount the prerequisites that deal specifically with enclosed
buildings (indoor environmental quality; minimum energy performance;
and chlorofluorocarbon (CFC) reduction in heating, ventilation,
air conditioning and refrigeration equipment), we see that such
a project would qualify for LEED certification because it would
receive at least 26 credits—the minimum required.
USGBC is currently working on a new program for neighborhood development
(LEED-ND) through working groups that look at land resources and
efficiency, resource efficiency, transportation and mobility, and
community and design. The program will address the built structure,
which LEED-NC currently handles, to street and block, neighborhood,
and regional considerations. In the meantime, we encourage you to
use the best practice methodologies recommended by LEED 2.1 to provide
responsible stewardship of our energy and environmental resources. |
